Form 990-ez online: how booster and PTO treasurers file it

Last updated 2026-07-25

what is form 990 (and where does the 990-EZ fit in)?

Form 990 is the annual information return the IRS requires from most tax-exempt organizations, the paperwork that reports income, spending, and activities to keep the public and the IRS informed about a nonprofit's finances ^[1]. It's not a tax bill in the normal sense (exempt orgs usually owe nothing), but skipping it has real consequences, including losing your exempt status automatically. The IRS actually has a family of versions, sized to the organization: - Form 990-N (e-Postcard): for organizations with gross receipts normally $50,000 or less ^[2]

• Form 990-EZ: for organizations with gross receipts under $200,000 AND total assets under $500,000 at year end ^[3]
• Form 990 (full form): for organizations above those thresholds
• Form 990-PF: for private foundations, regardless of size So a "990 tax form" isn't one document. It's a tier system, and your booster club's gross receipts and total assets decide which tier you're in. Most small parent-run booster clubs and PTOs land in either the 990-N or 990-EZ category, and it's common to bounce between the two depending on how big a fundraising year was. See our overview on form 990 for the full picture across all versions.

what is the 990-EZ, specifically?

Form 990-EZ, "Short Form Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax," is a shorter version of the full 990, built for mid-size exempt organizations ^[3]. It still asks for a real accounting of revenue, expenses, program activities, and balance sheet info, just condensed compared to the full 990's dozens of pages and schedules. You generally qualify to use it if, for the tax year:

• Gross receipts were less than $200,000, and
• Total assets at the end of the year were less than $500,000 ^[3] If either number is over, you're bumped up to the full Form 990. If both numbers are under the 990-N threshold ($50,000 gross receipts), you can file the simpler 990-N instead, though a group under $50,000 is still allowed to file the 990-EZ voluntarily in some situations, like when a state charity office requires more detail than the e-Postcard provides. One quirk worth knowing: some states require a copy of your federal 990 or 990-EZ (not the 990-N) as part of charitable registration, even if the IRS would let you file the e-Postcard. Confirm with your state charity office before assuming the e-Postcard alone covers you everywhere.

can you file form 990-ez online for free?

Not the way you can with the 990-N. The IRS itself doesn't run a free public portal for standalone 990-EZ e-filing the way it does for the e-Postcard. Instead, for tax years beginning after July 1, 2019, the law requires electronic filing of Form 990-EZ, done through IRS-authorized e-file providers rather than a government portal you log into directly ^[4]. The underlying law here is the Taxpayer First Act of 2019, which mandated electronic filing for exempt organizations' information returns, including the 990-EZ, phased in with transition relief for the smallest filers in the first year ^{[4] [5]}. Practically, that means one of these paths: 1. Use a commercial IRS-authorized e-file provider (a paid software product built for exempt org returns) 2. Hire a bookkeeper, accountant, or preparer who has e-file access for exempt organizations 3. In narrow cases, ask the IRS about a paper-filing exception if you genuinely can't e-file (undue hardship requests exist, but they're the exception, not the plan) There's no reliable free option here the way there is for the e-Postcard, and pricing among the authorized software providers varies enough (commonly somewhere in the low hundreds of dollars per return, though we're giving a range because pricing is provider-set, not IRS-set, and changes) that it's worth comparing before you commit. Check the IRS's current list of approved e-file providers directly ^[4] rather than trusting a random search result, since that list changes.

what's the deadline, and what happens if you miss it?

Form 990-EZ is due on the 15th day of the 5th month after your organization's accounting period ends. For a calendar-year booster club (year ending December 31), that's May 15 of the following year ^[1]. You can request an automatic 6-month extension using Form 8868 ^[1]. Miss it, and nothing happens the first year. Miss it three years running, and the consequence is automatic: the IRS revokes your tax-exempt status by operation of law, no warning letter required beyond the missed filings themselves ^[2]. That's the mechanism behind most booster club and PTO auto-revocations. Groups don't usually lose exempt status because the IRS came after them; they lose it because three consecutive years went by with nothing filed, often across treasurer handoffs where nobody realized a filing was due. Once revoked, you're off the IRS Exempt Organizations Business Master File and your donors' gifts stop being tax-deductible until you're reinstated. Reinstatement (retroactive or not) runs through Rev. Proc. 2014-11 and involves its own paperwork and, often, a user fee. That's a separate mess from the topic here, but it's the reason getting 990-EZ filing right, on time, every year, matters more than the paperwork itself might suggest.

what does a treasurer do (and how does the 990-EZ fit into that job)?

A treasurer is the person responsible for an organization's money: tracking it, reporting on it, and making sure required filings happen on time. In a booster club or PTO, that's rarely a full-time job, but it comes with real deadlines attached. What does a treasurer do, concretely, across a typical year? The core list looks like this: - Keep the books: track income (dues, concessions, fundraisers, sponsorships) and expenses (equipment, travel, event costs)

• Reconcile the bank account monthly against the books
• Prepare or review a budget with the board
• File the annual IRS return (990-N, 990-EZ, or full 990, depending on size)
• Handle state-level filings: annual corporate reports, charitable solicitation registration renewals, raffle license paperwork if applicable
• Maintain records for the board and for whoever takes over next (this is where a lot of clubs fall down)
• Flag cash-handling risks: two people counting concession cash, receipts for reimbursements, no single person with sole control of both the checkbook and the records So what does a club treasurer do that's different from a corporate one? Mostly scale and continuity risk. A club treasurer of a club is usually a volunteer serving a year or two, often with zero handoff documentation from the last person. That's exactly why the 990 filing question trips people up: the treasurer who filed last year graduated their kid out of the program, and nobody told the new treasurer a return was even due. If you're stepping into the role this month, our treasurer basics hub and the ^[990](/articles/treasurer-basics/990) overview are good starting points for the full job description, more than the tax piece.

what does a treasurer do in a club (day to day, more than at tax time)?

Tax filing is one afternoon (or a few hours spread across a week) once a year. The rest of the job is smaller and more constant. Month to month, a functioning club treasurer typically:

• Deposits fundraiser and concession cash within a few days, never sitting on it in a car or a closet
• Logs every transaction with a date, amount, and purpose, even the small ones
• Gets receipts for reimbursements before writing a check, not after
• Reports a simple income/expense summary at each board meeting
• Keeps a paper or digital folder of bank statements, the last three years of 990 filings, and the state registration certificate What is a treasurer supposed to catch that a casual glance misses? Usually it's things like: a fundraiser that lost money nobody noticed, a check written without board approval, or gross receipts creeping past $50,000, which is the line where 990-N stops being an option and 990-EZ (or full 990) becomes mandatory ^{[2] [3]}. That threshold crossing is exactly the kind of thing a new treasurer needs to check on day one, not discover in April.

how do gross receipts and total assets actually get calculated for the threshold test?

Gross receipts, for this purpose, means the total amount your organization received from all sources during the year, before subtracting any costs or expenses ^[6]. That's different from net income or profit. A car wash that brought in $8,000 in donations and spent $2,000 on supplies counts as $8,000 in gross receipts, not $6,000. The IRS uses a specific averaging test for 990-N eligibility across multiple years (more than one year's number), because fundraising totals swing year to year. Generally: gross receipts are considered $50,000 or less if the organization is up to 3 years old and averaged $75,000 or less in its first two years, or if it's been around 3+ years and averaged $50,000 or less over the most recent 3 years ^[2]. That averaging matters, because one big fundraising year (a gala, a big raffle) doesn't automatically knock you out of e-Postcard eligibility if your three-year average stays under the line. Total assets, for the 990-EZ threshold, means everything the organization owns at year end: cash, investments, equipment, inventory, minus nothing. If your booster club has $40,000 in a savings account plus $15,000 of uniforms and equipment on the books, that's $55,000 in total assets, over the $500,000 990-EZ ceiling only in the sense that it's well under it (which is fine; you'd still qualify for 990-EZ on the assets side).

what does the 990-EZ actually ask for?

The form itself runs a handful of pages plus schedules as needed. Core parts include: - Part I: Revenue, expenses, and changes in net assets

• Part II: Balance sheet (beginning and end of year)
• Part III: Statement of program service accomplishments
• Part IV: List of officers, directors, trustees, and key employees
• Part V: Other information, including questions about lobbying, related organizations, and state filings
• Part VI: Additional information for section 501(c)(3) organizations specifically Depending on your activities, you may also need Schedule A (public charity status), Schedule B (contributors, sometimes), Schedule G (fundraising and gaming, relevant if you run raffles), or others. If your club runs a raffle, note that gaming activity reported here connects to your state raffle licensing obligations too; the IRS return and the state gaming license are two separate paperwork trails that both need attention. If this is your first time filling one out, budget more time than you think. A first-year treasurer with clean books from the prior year might get through it in an afternoon using e-file software; a treasurer inheriting messy records could easily spend several evenings reconstructing numbers before the form itself even gets touched.

990-N vs 990-EZ vs full 990: which one do you actually file?

Filing	Gross receipts	Total assets	E-file required?	Typical filer
990-N (e-Postcard)	Normally ≤ $50,000	No asset limit	Yes, IRS free portal	Small booster clubs, small PTOs
990-EZ	< $200,000	< $500,000	Yes, via authorized e-file software	Mid-size PTOs, established boosters
Full 990	≥ $200,000	≥ $500,000	Yes	Large PTAs, multi-sport booster orgs
990-PF	Any amount	Any amount	Yes	Private foundations	Thresholds per IRS guidance [2] [3]. If your numbers put you right at a boundary, some organizations choose to file the more detailed form anyway (990-EZ instead of 990-N) because a state charity office or grant funder wants to see it. That's a legitimate choice, not a requirement, unless your state says otherwise. For deeper detail on the e-Postcard specifically, see 990-n and form 990-n. For the mechanics of the full-size return, see irs form 990 and 990 tax form.

what if you're behind on filings or think you've already been revoked?

First, check. The IRS maintains a searchable Tax Exempt Organization Search tool where you can look up your organization by name or EIN and see its current status ^[7]. It's free and takes about two minutes. If you find your organization on the auto-revocation list, don't panic, but don't ignore it either. Reinstatement is possible through Rev. Proc. 2014-11, and small organizations that would have qualified for the 990-N in the relevant years often get access to a streamlined retroactive reinstatement process with a reduced user fee, though the fee structure and process details change, so confirm current amounts and forms directly with the IRS rather than relying on an old number floating around online . If you're mid-transition (new treasurer, unclear history), the smartest first move is pulling the prior three years of filings from the IRS search tool or asking the outgoing treasurer for copies, before you file anything new. Filing a 990-EZ for the current year while three prior years sit unfiled doesn't stop revocation retroactively; the missing years matter. This is one of the exact situations where a $99 one-time State-Personalized Treasurer Kit earns its keep: it's built to walk a new treasurer through exactly this kind of "what's actually been filed, what's overdue, what does my state additionally require" audit, state by state, instead of piecing it together from a dozen government PDFs at 11pm.

does a state also require something separate from the IRS return?

Almost always, yes, and this is where treasurers get tripped up most. The IRS return and your state's requirements are two different systems that don't talk to each other. Most states with charitable solicitation laws require organizations that raise money from the public to register with a state charity office or the state Attorney General, often annually, sometimes with a copy of the federal 990 or 990-EZ attached . Some states also require a separate annual corporate filing (like an annual report) to your Secretary of State, unrelated to the charity registration entirely. And if your club runs raffles, bingo, or similar games, that typically needs its own state gaming license, covered in our raffles by state guides, on top of everything above. There's no way to give one universal answer here because every state's charity office runs its own registration threshold, renewal schedule, and fee. Confirm with your specific state charity office (usually housed in the Attorney General's office or Secretary of State) what's required for a group your size, and don't assume filing your federal 990-EZ satisfies any state obligation automatically.

Frequently asked questions

What does a treasurer do?

A treasurer tracks all money coming in and going out, reconciles bank statements, prepares budget updates for the board, and handles required filings like the IRS 990 series and state charity or raffle registrations. In a small booster club or PTO, it's usually a volunteer role with real legal deadlines attached, even though it's unpaid.

What is a treasurer?

A treasurer is the officer or volunteer responsible for an organization's finances: recordkeeping, reporting, and compliance filings. The role exists in corporations, nonprofits, clubs, and government bodies alike, but for a booster club or PTO it's typically one parent volunteer managing everything from concession cash to the annual IRS return.

What do treasurers do that other board members don't?

Treasurers hold financial accountability specifically: they're the one who signs off on the numbers, catches discrepancies, and files the tax return. Other board officers (president, secretary) handle governance and meeting records, not the money itself, though good boards review the treasurer's reports together rather than leaving them unchecked.

What is Form 990?

Form 990 is the IRS's annual information return for tax-exempt organizations, reporting revenue, expenses, and activities to the public and the IRS. It comes in several sizes: 990-N for gross receipts under $50,000, 990-EZ for organizations under $200,000 in receipts and $500,000 in assets, and the full Form 990 above that ^[1][2][3].

What is a 990 tax form?

It's the annual reporting form tax-exempt organizations file with the IRS instead of a corporate income tax return. Despite the name, most filers owe no tax; the form exists to keep exempt status transparent and accountable. Which version you file (990-N, 990-EZ, full 990, or 990-PF) depends on your gross receipts and total assets ^[1].

What is the 990?

"The 990" usually refers generally to the IRS's family of annual returns for tax-exempt organizations, though people also use it loosely to mean the full-size Form 990 specifically. Context matters: a small booster club talking about "filing our 990" is often really filing the 990-N or 990-EZ, not the full form.

What does a treasurer do in a club?

In a club setting, a treasurer keeps books month to month, deposits fundraiser and concession cash promptly, gets receipts before reimbursing anyone, reports a simple income/expense summary at meetings, and files the annual IRS return plus any required state charity or raffle paperwork. Continuity for the next treasurer is part of the job too.

What does a club treasurer do differently from a corporate treasurer?

Mostly it's a matter of scale and turnover risk. Club treasurers are usually volunteers serving a year or two with little formal training, managing far smaller sums, but facing the exact same IRS filing requirements and revocation risk as a much bigger organization if deadlines get missed.

What does a treasurer of a club do when there's no handoff documentation?

Start by checking the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search tool for your group's filing history and current status, pull whatever bank statements and prior returns you can find, and confirm with your state charity office what's currently on file there. Reconstructing three years of missing records is tedious but usually possible with bank statements alone.

Can Form 990-EZ be filed online for free?

Not through a standalone free IRS portal the way the 990-N e-Postcard works. Since tax years beginning after July 1, 2019, 990-EZ must be filed electronically through an IRS-authorized e-file provider or a preparer with e-file access, and those services typically charge a fee ^[4][5].

What's the deadline for Form 990-EZ?

It's due the 15th day of the 5th month after your organization's fiscal year ends, so May 15 for calendar-year filers. A 6-month extension is available by filing Form 8868 before the original deadline ^[1].

What happens if a booster club misses three years of 990 filings?

The IRS automatically revokes tax-exempt status once an organization fails to file any required return or notice for three consecutive years, with no separate notice needed beyond the missed filings ^[6]. Reinstatement is possible afterward under Rev. Proc. 2014-11, but donors' gifts aren't tax-deductible during the gap.

Does a booster club need to file with the state in addition to the IRS?

In most states, yes. Charitable solicitation registration with a state charity office or Attorney General is common for groups raising money from the public, often renewed annually, and separate from any IRS filing. Raffle or gaming activity usually needs its own state license too. Confirm requirements with your specific state charity office.

Sources

1. IRS, Form 990 Resources and Tools: Form 990 purpose, deadline (15th day of 5th month after year end), and Form 8868 extension
2. IRS, Annual Electronic Filing Requirement for Small Exempt Organizations - Form 990-N (e-Postcard): 990-N eligibility, gross receipts averaging test across 1/2/3+ year lookback
3. IRS, Form 990-EZ, Short Form Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax: 990-EZ gross receipts and total assets thresholds ($200,000 / $500,000)
4. Taxpayer First Act of 2019, Pub. L. No. 116-25: Statutory mandate for electronic filing of exempt organization information returns
5. IRS, Automatic Revocation of Exemption: Automatic revocation after three consecutive years of failing to file required returns
6. IRS, Tax Exempt Organization Search: Free tool to check an organization's current exempt status and revocation history
7. IRS, Rev. Proc. 2014-11: Streamlined and other reinstatement procedures after automatic revocation